Xbox Live accounts have been compromised before via social engineering methods but now a new report claims that a group is going after accounts that have been used by current and former "high-profile" Microsoft employees.
The Verge reports that Microsoft has admitted to the attacks and added, "We are actively working with law enforcement and other affected companies to disable this current method of attack and prevent its further use. Security is of critical importance to us and we are working every day to bring new forms of protection to our members." The company did not give specific information on which Microsoft team members had their accounts hacked.
It"s believed that the group responsible for these accounts being compromised was able to gain access to a third party database which included social security numbers. The hackers are believed to have used social engineering techniques to obtain the Xbox Live account information starting with the social security numbers as their basis. For its part, the company says, "Microsoft does not collect or use Social Security numbers in its services, including Xbox LIVE Gamertags or Microsoft accounts."
As usual, the best way to keep your Xbox Live account, or indeed any online account, as safe as possible is to change your password on a regular basis and to use strong passwords.
Source: The Verge | Image via Microsoft